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Confident Benni McCarthy unafraid of Cape Town City task

New Cape Town City coach Benni McCarthy feels his inexperience as a head coach will not hinder his duties with his new club.

South Africa’s record goalscorer was on Tuesday unveiled as The Citizens’ new head coach, replacing Eric Tinkler who has since joined SuperSport United.

McCarthy, who started out at Seven Stars as a player and was given his first opportunity in the PSL by John Comitis, has now come full circle as the latter unveiled him as his club’s new coach.

“I have to thank the chairman and the club for having the faith in me and believing that I am the right guy to achieve unbelievable things with this club,” were McCarthy's first words as head coach. “I hope pay back the faith in them by working hard and doing the same.”

Despite his inexperience as a head coach, having only been assistant coach with Belgian outfit Sint-Truiden VV, the 39-year-old is determined to not let this work against him.

“I’ve seen experienced managers who have been in the game for many, many years, fail,” he said. “So why not invest in someone new and see what they can bring to the table? Everyone has to start somewhere. And luckily for me, I’m getting the perfect opportunity to start my coaching career off as I did as a player - I was ambitious coming from an underprivileged background, but I wanted to strive for success. And many thought, where is this club going with a 17-year-old kid, but the club knew what I was capable of, and the levels I could reach if they continued their belief in me.

“And I think the chairman and Cape Town City is doing the same right now, and I know what I have to do to try and succeed. And hopefully I prove that, day by day.”

McCarthy is set to keep the same technical team the club utilised during the 2016/17 campaign, with whom he will meet for preseason preparations on 26 June.